VANDALIZED

Graffiti defaces Fitchburg church

FITCHBURG - As local Boy Scouts and church members gathered inside the Rollstone Congregational Church on Main Street for a meeting Thursday night, someone was outside defacing the building with anti-Christian symbols and cryptic messages in black spray paint.

"It's heartbreaking," said Bill Hodges, chief lay officer and facilities manager of the church. "It shouldn't be done anywhere, but a church of all places-it's supposed to be a sanctuary."

Hodges said a Scout noticed the first display at about 9 p.m., as he exited the meeting. Hodges surveyed the damage to one of the back doors and decided to contact police in the morning.

At about 10:45 p.m., Hodges and other church managers walked the perimeter of the church to see if there was any other damage before closing up and found none.

But when Hodges returned Friday morning to take a photograph before heading to the Police Department, he discovered a second back door and the rear portion of the Snow Street side of the church were hit too.

The numbers "666" were displayed on the Snow Street Side, with inverted crosses underneath. To the left of that was a circular anarchy symbol, with an inverted cross through the center. The words "MY WAR" were written on either side.

Another inverted cross was painted on one of the back doors, with mathematic symbols on either side, while the second back door showed the anarchy symbol with the inverted cross again, and the words "MY WAR" over and under it.

A police officer arrived to survey the damage at about 9:30 a.m.

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Friday and filed a report, but Hodges was told that there's no specialist available on the force to investigate whether the symbols are gang-related.

"Whoever this idiot is, I don't want him coming back. If you let it go, you embolden them," Hodges said.
Hodges said he's offering a $500 reward to anyone who has information about the vandal's identity.

Mayor Lisa Wong also asked that anyone with information about the incident contact her office at 978-345-9550.

"I'm obviously very disappointeded that somebody did that, but I'm confident that the police take these matters very seriously based on the Police Department's record of going after and being able to prosecute people who've been responsible for graffiti in the city," Wong said.

Chief Robert DeMoura was struck by the anti-Christian sentiment of the markings.

"I'm more concerned it might be something more against the religion than a gang," DeMoura said.

DeMoura noted that graffiti in Fitchburg seems to be on the decline, after key offenders were arrested last year.

Sgt. Joaquin Kilson said there were no other graffiti incidents reported in the city Thursday or Friday.

"It's some nut that went in there and did this," Kilson said. "If we get more of the same, then we'll take a closer at it, but for now we're treating it as an isolated incident."

Extra checks will take place in the area for now, Kilson said.

Rollstone Congregational Church members were left with the arduous task of removing the black paint from their beloved church in the Friday morning heat.

"I just want it off before our older congregates see it, because it will really upset them," said Michelle Hodges, Bill Hodges' wife and a church official.

Rollstone Congregational Church, established in 1868, is very "community-centric," according to Bill Hodges, and regularly hosts Scout meetings, Narcotics Anonymous meetings and has run a food pantry at various points throughout its history. He said this is the first time he's witnessed such brazen hostility directed at the church.

The graffiti was a new experience for Interim Pastor Russell Grant, too. He said he's experienced robberies while serving at other Fitchburg churches "but not much paint."

"There are people in this world who are taught to hate religion and hate churches," Russell said. "They have their own little ax to grind, and it's just a sad thing that their hearts and minds are twisted to do this."

Those with information on the incident should call Bill Hodges at 508-479-0357.

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